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Baum: Hoffenheim “pose a tough challenge”

After winning a point in Dortmund on Monday night, FC Augsburg welcome TSG Hoffenheim to the WWK ARENA on Saturday afternoon (15:30 CET). FCA will look to get a win for the home fans despite having to deal with a wealth of absentees.

The matchday squad is still to be decided ahead of the game. While Jan Moravek and Marco Richter could be available, Manuel Baum has to do without Alfred Finnbogason and Jeffrey Gouweleeuw due to long term injuries. Caiuby will also miss out due to a suspension. Raphael Framberger (ankle ligament damage) underwent an operation on Thursday after sustaining an injury in the game against Dortmund at the start of the week. “We will be able to field eleven quality players,” ensured Baum nevertheless. Possible replacements for Framberger include Jonathan Schmid, Christoph Janker or youth player Simon Asta. Goalkeeper Marwin Hitz remains positive ahead of the game. “We were without a lot of players last year as well and managed to adapt to the situation.” However, the Switzerland international is still wary of this weekend’s opponents. “They’re in a bad spell of form at the moment, but if you watch their games, you can tell that they do a lot of things very well.”

FCA and Hoffenheim with the same amount of points

Julian Nagelsmann’s side had to deal with a few key departures at the beginning of the season. “You can tell that they’ve lost some important players, but they still have the potential to play attractive football nevertheless,” analysed Manuel Baum. With both sides on 32 points, Augsburg will look to play in a similarly aggressive style to the one they employed in the 1-1 draw against Dortmund.

FCA are working through their own little dip in form as well at the moment, and are looking to keep the points in Augsburg. “I’ve been feeling good about this season ever since the preseason and that’s translated into points,” emphasised Hitz. But Baum knows that feeling good is not enough against a dangerous Hoffenheim side. “They pose a tough challenge for us. We have to play as a team and give our all.”

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